The draft grades were not kind to the Bulls and their first-round pick Patrick Williams on Thursday morning.
One thing that has become very clear about Arturas Karnisovas, however?
The franchise’s new executive vice president of basketball operations really doesn’t care much about your draft-grade opinions.
“I think his perception, I didn’t agree with the perception people have of him,’’ Karnisovas told reporters in a Zoom call hours after grabbing the Florida State forward with the fourth-overall pick. “They thought he was a raw athlete and he wasn’t skilled, and when I saw his skill level and ball handling and shooting and ability to pass, I would disagree that he’s just a raw athlete. He just knows how to play.
“I think another, he’s a versatile defender so he can guard from one-through-five, so I don’t even know what position he is. He’s going to identify that when he gets here to Chicago and coach [Billy] Donovan, he’s going to be able to use him. If you watch Florida State games, after baskets, he would be full-court pressing on top of guards. And that’s a very unique skill for such an athletic and big player.’’
A skill that Karnisovas and the Bulls welcome with open arms.
Yes, former coach Jim Boylen turned the defensive efficiency numbers around last season, but on many nights those were empty calories with what they gave up on that end of the floor both in the paint and at the rim.
Then Karnisovas and company allowed defensive specialists Kris Dunn and Shaquille Harrison to take the walk into free agency last week.
With Coby White and Zach LaVine sometimes seemingly having an allergy to playing defense, and Otto Porter Jr. expected to be elsewhere by next offseason, in Karnisovas’ world not only was Williams the best available player on the board, but a need for the roster.
Sure, it’s not a good look to draft a kid that couldn’t even start on his college team — see the Dion Waiterses of the world — but being one of the youngest players in this draft class also meant that he was one of the youngest players on the FSU campus.
What Karnisovas is banking on is Williams to continue understanding that at 6-foot-8, 225 pounds, his potential at this level is basically untapped.
“I just think that the more study you do on Patrick, the more you realize that this is what the NBA is today,’’ Karnisovas said. “We need players in our league that can play multiple positions. He’s an elite athlete. He showed that in college. He wasn’t as consistent, but on campus at Florida State he was at such a young age, and started to pick up at the end of the season.
“For us, he was the guy to get.’’
And the position to get.
Yes, the long-range shooting of a lethal backcourt is coveted by teams, but the Association is all about who your forward is. If he’s elite — especially on both ends of the floor — print those playoff tickets. LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Davis, Jayson Tatum, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant, go right down the list.
If a team doesn’t have a forward of that caliber on the roster, they better have a forward that can slow them down.
So while the criticism of Karnisovas’ first draft in his new chair was predictable, the executive’s hope is it proves to be unwarranted.
“I’m just looking forward to [Williams] getting here,’’ Karnisovas said. “It’s a very short time between now and training camp, Dec. 1. The learning curve is going to be very steep. We’re going to try to do our best to integrate him into our practice.
“We wanted to get [this draft] right. And Patrick was our guy.’’
